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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27650927">Explosion + Hospital + Nurse Jack</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blueeyesmakemecry/pseuds/blueeyesmakemecry'>blueeyesmakemecry (Blueeyesmakemecry)</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>MacGyver (TV 2016)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe, Bad Parent James MacGyver (MacGyver TV 2016), Caring Jack Dalton (MacGyver TV 2016), Child Abuse, Gen, Hurt Angus Macgyver (Macgyver 2016), Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, James MacGyver (MacGyver TV 2016) Being an Asshole, Mac is a child, Nurse Jack Dalton, Nurse Riley Davis, Nurse Wilt Bozer, Protective Jack Dalton (MacGyver 2016), School-aged Mac, Worried Jack Dalton (MacGyver TV 2016)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 20:34:07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,307</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27650927</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blueeyesmakemecry/pseuds/blueeyesmakemecry</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“Is my dad here?” Mac asked, clutching Newton to his chest.</p><p>Jack sighed. “He’s not here. He had to go answer some questions from the police--”</p><p>“The police?” Mac interrupted, his heart pounding. “But it was an accident, I didn’t mean to do it I swear. I-I just didn’t mix the right chemicals but I didn’t mean to blow anything up. I don’t want to go to jail.”<br/>~~~<br/>AU where 9-year-old Mac accidentally blows up a science experiment at school and gets hurt. Child Protective Services gets involved when James abandons Mac at the hospital, Mac ends up bonding with Nurse Jack and Jack finds out about James' abuse of Mac.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Angus MacGyver &amp; James MacGyver (MacGyver TV 2016), Jack Dalton &amp; Angus MacGyver (MacGyver TV 2016)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>105</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Explosion + Hospital + Nurse Jack</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I have such a soft spot for a snuggly, baby Mac. I know he technically would be called Angus at this age, but for the sake of this fic, I'm pretending he goes by Mac.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Mac laid in the hospital bed, sleepy and alone. His head hurt and he had burns on his hands, chest and face from where chemicals had splattered on him in the explosion earlier that day.</p><p>He hadn’t meant to make a beaker explode in his science classroom. He had finished the assignment and Mrs. Beckner didn’t usually care when he messed around with a few non-toxic, safe chemicals. She’d made it clear which ones Mac was allowed to touch.</p><p>But the middle schoolers had come for buddy day that morning and some of their supplies were still out. He’d just gotten curious and mixed a few things together. It should have worked and turned into a small bubbly volcano, with each shoot of “lava” a different color, according to one of the textbooks he’d read. Instead, the fake lava had shot out of the beaker and struck the ceiling, the walls and splashed all over Mac.</p><p>The explosive chemical reaction startled him and he stumbled backwards and fell, knocking the back of his head on a lab table. The chemicals burned through his shirt and even seconds after the explosion he could feel blisters forming on his chest, hands and face.</p><p>Mac felt his face flush as he recalled Mrs. Beckner’s furious expression when she ran over to him. He was pretty sure she yelled after that. But he had been so scared she was going to hit him or punish him that he had blacked out for a few minutes.</p><p>When he came to, paramedics surrounded him and Mrs. Beckner was gone. Now he was in a bed in the pediatrics ward, waiting for the second round of treatment on his burns and for the social worker from Child Protective Services to come talk to him.</p><p>One of the ER nurses, whose name was Jack, called CPS when Mac’s dad didn’t pick up the phone or respond to calls within three hours.</p><p>Mac told Jack he was fine, but the older man wasn’t having it. “You can’t leave a 9-year-old alone in a hospital,” he’d grumbled as he walked away after leaving yet another message with Mac’s dad.</p><p>Mac liked Jack. He was funny and kept him distracted as he cleaned and bandaged his burns. He’d even given him a stuffed tiger after he caught Mac staring longingly at the bed next to his, where a cranky, feverish toddler clutched a stuffed bear.</p><p>“I can’t, my dad— he doesn’t like them,” Mac had said when Jack first gave him the tiger, pushing the toy away. The last thing he wanted was to get too attached and be devastated when his father threw it away when they got home.</p><p>But Jack left the toy with him and Mac eventually picked it up. He hadn’t held a stuffed animal since his mom died three years ago. He’d forgotten how comforting it was to cuddle with.</p><p>Jack’s face had lit up when he saw Mac holding the tiger when he came back. But that had been about an hour ago. Social services was apparently having a busy day and had cases more urgent than his, so he was stuck in the hospital until his dad came and a CPS worker could talk to them both.</p><p>Mac yawned and glanced around the room. The blinds were open and he could see nurses bustling around outside, but no one seemed to be paying him any attention.</p><p>He cautiously stuck his thumb in his mouth, eyeing the door warily as he settled onto his side. His dad beat him the last time he caught him sucking his thumb. But Mac couldn’t help it; no one had ever weaned him off the habit.</p><p>He was 6 when his mom died and was still sucking his thumb. She thought it was sweet and half-heartedly tried to stop him, but her heart was never in it. Three years later, Mac had endured countless bearings and punishments after his dad caught him sucking his thumb, but he couldn’t kick the habit. He’d tried everything: bad tasting nail polish, gloves, duct tape around his thumbs.</p><p>Nothing worked. He just couldn’t fall asleep without sucking his thumb.</p><p>He felt himself drifting off and he let his eyes fall shut. But the click of the door opening startled him awake. He pulled his thumb out of his mouth with a loud pop.</p><p>“I’m sorry, miss,” he said, his eyes wide and scared. “I wasn’t—I didn’t—I—“ Mac broke off and let out a shuddering breath. He couldn’t cry. That was just another sign of weakness and another reason for his dad to hurt him. He would already be punished when they got home. Things didn’t need to get any worse.</p><p>“It’s OK, sweetie. You’re not in any trouble,” the nurse said, slowly approaching him. Mac eyed her warily. He didn’t recognize her and while he rationally knew he could trust her, he couldn’t help the panic that spiked in his chest and mind at the sight of her.</p><p>“Still no luck with your dad and the CPS worker will be another hour,” she said. “Do you mind if I sit with you? I’m Riley. Jack asked me to come keep you company until he could come back.”</p><p>Mac glanced up at her. She looked nice enough. And if Jack had sent her, she had to be alright.</p><p>“OK,” Mac replied. He was uncomfortable; talking to adults — or anyone else, really — had never been his strong suit.</p><p>“Did you know no two tigers have the same stripes?” he asked, carefully tracing the stripes on the stuffed tiger Jack had given him. “And they’re born blind, but their mamas take care of them until they can make it on their own.”</p><p>“Wow! You sure know a lot about tigers. Are they your favorite animal?” Riley asked, smiling.</p><p>“No,” Mac said. “But Jack gave me a book about tigers. He said I needed to learn more about Newton just in case he needed to go back to the wild. I don’t think Jack knows stuffed animals aren’t real. But I didn’t want to hurt his feelings so I pretended. It was a fascinating book!”</p><p>“Oh yeah?” Riley said, stifling a laugh. “Is Newton the name of your tiger?”</p><p>“Yeah. After Isaac Newton. They have a tiger named India at the zoo. A real one, I mean. She’s 600 pounds! And a really good swimmer.”</p><p>“Do you get to see India often?” Riley asked.</p><p>Mac’s face fell and he turned away slightly from Riley.</p><p>“Not since my mom died,” he said softly, fiddling with the tag on Newton’s stomach. “My dad doesn’t like the zoo. He said it’s loud and crowded and is full of stupid people.” His eyes widened after he said the last sentence and they darted to the door, which remained shut.</p><p>“I’m sure you get to do plenty of other fun things with your dad!” She chirped, leaning over to gently brush Mac’s hair from his eyes.</p><p>Mac shrugged and bit his lip. He suddenly did not want to talk to the nurse anymore. She was asking too many questions about his family.</p><p>“Can I sleep?” He asked. “I’m feeling tired.”</p><p>“Of course, sweetie. I’ll hit the lights on the way out. Sweet dreams.”</p><p>Mac didn’t dare put his thumb in his mouth. But he closed his eyes, content to at least pretend to sleep.</p><p>“What’s this I hear about you clamming up with Riley?” A loud voice boomed as the door swung open about a half hour later. Jack was back.</p><p>Mac yawned as he sat up in bed. He winced when the movement jostled his injuries.</p><p>“She was asking too many questions,” Mac said.</p><p>“About what?”</p><p>Mac shrugged. “Things.”</p><p>Jack laughed. “Well aren’t you chatty right now. Can I check how your burns are doing?”</p><p>Mac nodded and Jack helped him pull down the hospital gown to expose the burns on his chest. Mac made sure it still covered his stomach. He knew it was still bruised from when he burnt dinner the other night and his dad hit him. He winced and gripped the sheet in his fist as Jack carefully cleaned and bandaged the burns on the top half of his body.</p><p>“Anywhere else I need to treat?” Jack asked as he finished up with a burn across Mac’s cheek. Mac quickly shook his head. “No? How about the bruises on your stomach?”</p><p>Mac froze. How did Jack know about those? No one was supposed to know about them. Jack must have seen something in his face, because he answered Mac’s unspoken question.</p><p>“I saw them when I was cleaning the burns on your chest earlier. What happened?”</p><p>“They-they’re from the explosion today,” Mac stammered. His breathing quickened.</p><p>“Those bruises are more than a day old, kiddo. Did someone hurt you?” Mac shook his head and turned away from Jack. If he told Jack, then he would know what a failure he was. He hugged his arms around his chest, curling in on himself.</p><p>“No, I swear. I probably fell or something and didn’t realize I got bruised,” Mac said, trying to keep the desperation out of his voice. His dad would be furious if anyone found out about his lessons.</p><p>Jack frowned, but dropped the topic. “You hungry? I think there’s some jello downstairs with your name on it.”</p><p>“Red jello?” Mac asked eagerly, relief rushing through him at the change in conversation. Jack laughed.</p><p>“Your wish is my command. Red jello, coming right up.”</p><p>After Jack left, Mac pulled the gown back up over his shoulders, being careful not to disturb any of the new bandages. The door clicked open again but Mac was too distracted trying to tie the gown behind his neck and he didn’t look over.</p><p>“That was fast! Did you find red?”</p><p>“Hello, Angus.”</p><p>It was his father. Mac froze, dropping the ties and forgetting about the gown.</p><p>“D-dad,” he stammered, his eyes wide. “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make anything blow up and I didn’t want to stay here but they made me wait until you got here because they said they wanted me and you to talk to CPS—“</p><p>“What did you tell them, boy?” James MacGyver growled as he approached Mac’s bed.</p><p>“Nothing, nothing I swear. They don’t know anything.”</p><p>Mac was near tears. Part of him wanted Jack to come back and interrupt. Or even Riley. But he didn’t know if the nice nurses could do anything about his dad. Maybe they would agree that he deserved to be punished and would let his dad do whatever he wanted.</p><p>“They better not,” James said. “What happened at school?”</p><p>As Mac explained, his father’s face grew stonier and stonier. Mac kept eyeing the door, but it stayed shut.</p><p>“I should belt you, you little bastard,” James growled, standing up and facing Mac. Mac shrank back.</p><p>“I’m sorry, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to, it won’t happen again I swear. Dad, please. It was an accident.”</p><p>“I knew you were stupid, but I thought you were smart enough to know my orders are not optional,” James said. He gripped Mac’s hair at the back of his head and pulled his neck back painfully. “What’s my number one rule?”</p><p>“Don’t draw attention to yourself,” Mac mumbled.</p><p>“And?”</p><p>“Anyone who breaks the rules deserves to be punished.”</p><p>“What punishment do you think you deserve?” Mac always hated this part. He never knew what James was thinking, or if he was suggesting something far worse than his dad had in mind. Or worse, his punishment idea was more lenient than his dad’s. Those times were always the most painful. Mac chewed on his thumbnail and shrugged, his eyes downcast. That was the closest he could get to his thumb in his mouth when his dad was around.</p><p>“...the belt?” Mac whispered after a few moments of silence. He was scared to look up at James.</p><p>“You know I don’t want to do this, Angus. If you would stop misbehaving then I wouldn’t have to.” Mac heard James unbuckle his belt, then the swish as he pulled it off.</p><p>“Turn over onto your stomach and tell me what you’re being punished for,” James said.</p><p>Mac shook as he flipped onto his stomach, the gown falling open again on his back.</p><p>“I-I was stupid and not careful enough in school and made you miss work to come pick me up from the hospital,” Mac said, his voice barely above a whisper.</p><p>“And?”</p><p>“And I should have stayed at school and said I was fine.” Mac heard the whistling of the belt before he felt the splitting, white-hot pain on his back. But he didn’t cry out. He knew that would only make it worse. He gripped the blanket with one hand and stuck his other thumb in his mouth, choking back a sob. Silent tears streamed down his face.</p><p>The door flew open.</p><p>“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Jack bellowed. He heard a thud behind him and grunts and gasps from both James and Jack. He was scared to look at what was happening.</p><p>“No, wait it’s my fault!” Mac cried, finally working up the nerve to look back. Jack had James pinned up against the wall and was throwing punch after punch at him. Both men looked furious. “I needed it, it was my fault, I deserved it. I was bad, I deserved it.”</p><p>No one paid attention to him.</p><p>Several more nurses bustled in, quickly followed by a man and a woman who looked like police officers. When Mac tried to get off the bed to go over to his father, Nurse Riley gently pushed him back down.</p><p>“Stay here, kiddo. Can I see your back?” But Mac couldn’t tear his eyes away from Jack and James.</p><p>Even as the security guards dragged them apart, they spat profanities at each other and struggled in their grip. Riley had to hold Mac down on the bed to keep him from running over to his father. He finally gave up struggling against her grip and went limp, sobbing into her arms.</p><p>“N-No, I - it was my fault, I deserved it,” Mac sobbed. “I always do. He never hurts me unless I mess up. I have to learn.”</p><p>“Oh, sweetie,” Riley cooed, rocking him gently. “You don’t deserve any of that. No one has the right to hurt you.”</p><p>Mac’s breath caught in his chest. She couldn’t be right. Whenever his dad punished him, he had done something bad to deserve it.</p><p>He pulled out of her grasp and grabbed Newton before slipping under her arms and running out of the room before anyone could react. He couldn’t be there. Jack interrupting them would only make his punishment worse when they got home. Mac had never done anything this bad. He knew other people knowing about the punishments was a top-tier offense.</p><p>Mac ran into the first unlocked, empty room he could find and curled up in the corner. The lights were off and he was well hidden. He would be safe here for now.</p><p>He quivered in fear as he heard nurses calling his name through the halls, opening and closing doors as they checked for him in each room. They would find him if he didn’t come up with a better hiding place. He looked around the room. A tall supply cabinet sat against one of the far walls. When he cracked the door open, he saw there was enough room for him to sit inside if he curled up in a little ball.</p><p> </p><p>Mac must have cried himself to sleep, because the next thing he knew, the hospital was quiet. All he could hear were the beeps and hums of the machines in each room, but there were no voices.</p><p>He crept out of the cabinet, his hands shaking as he pushed the door open. He half expected someone to be waiting for him. But the room was empty. Had they given up looking for him? Even though he wanted to stay hidden, Mac couldn’t help but feel a little hurt at that thought.</p><p>The hall was empty when he poked his head out of the door and cautiously pushed it open. Most of the rooms were dark. He wondered what time it was. He wandered through the halls until he found a lone nurse outside a room, scribbling something in a chart. The nurse looked up at the sound of his footsteps and quickly pulled out his phone. It looked like he sent a quick text, then approached Mac. Mac didn’t recognize him, but he had a kind face.</p><p>“Are you lost, honey?”</p><p>Mac nodded slowly. “I -- do you know where my--” he stopped himself. He really didn’t want to see his father. Who knew if he even was still here.</p><p>“What’s your name?” the nurse asked. He crouched down to Mac’s level. He looked like he was eying Newton and Mac clutched him to his chest protectively. “I won’t take your toy, sweetie. It’s OK.”</p><p>“Is Jack--” But before Mac could finish his question, a door burst open at the end of the hall.</p><p>“I-I came as soon as I got your text, Bozer, is he here? Is he OK?” Jack exclaimed, panting and resting his hands on his knees.</p><p>Mac shied back, half-expecting his dad to be the next person to burst through the door. But no one came.</p><p>“Hey, kiddo,” Jack said, sounding out of breath but calmer as he approached Mac. “You had us all pretty worried.”</p><p>“Is my dad here?” Mac asked, clutching Newton to his chest.</p><p>Jack sighed. “He’s not here. He had to go answer some questions from the police--”</p><p>“The police?” Mac interrupted, his heart pounding. “But it was an accident, I didn’t mean to do it I swear. I-I just didn’t mix the right chemicals but I didn’t mean to blow anything up. I don’t want to go to jail.”</p><p>Tears streamed down his face and he watched Jack’s face transition from confused to heartbroken within seconds. “Oh, baby, no, no, no. You’re not in trouble. At all. I promise. Everyone knows it was a mistake. The police are talking to your dad about how he hit you today. Is that something he’s done before?”</p><p>Mac hesitated, glancing over at Bozer. The other nurse immediately turned back to his paperwork when he saw Mac was looking at him. His eyes darted around the hallway. It was empty.</p><p>Mac slowly nodded, avoiding eye contact with Jack. “But-but I always deserved it, I was always bad before I got punished,” he quickly clarified.</p><p>“It’s not OK for anyone to hurt you like that, sweetie,” Jack said softly.</p><p>Mac shook his head.</p><p>“But-but that’s how everyone learns,” he said softly. One look at the horrified look on Jack’s face had him doubting himself.</p><p>Mac swallowed hard. His breathing picked up until his whole body was shaking and he was gasping for air.</p><p>“But I have to deserve it, he’s my dad — he wouldn’t--he loves me,” he stammered.</p><p>Instead of answering, Jack pulled Mac into a tight hug. Mac clutched his shirt in his fist as he began sobbing into his chest. One of Jack’s hands rubbed circles on his back and the other gently carded through Mac’s hair.</p><p>Once he had cried himself dry, Mac sniffled and sat up. His eyes felt swollen and he rubbed at them with the back of his hand.</p><p>“Are you ready to go talk to CPS?” Jack asked softly.</p><p>Mac shook his head. “No. But I know I have to. Can-can you stay with me?”</p><p>“I’m sorry, I can’t, buddy. But I’ll be right outside the whole time, I promise,” Jack said, squeezing Mac’s hand. “It’s all going to be OK.”</p>
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